Paul Krugman: Poland versus Greece [Charts]

[Poland is] also a country with relatively low productivity by northwestern European standards, indeed lower productivity than Greece by standard international measures: [Chart]

But Poland has not had a Greek-style crisis, or indeed any crisis at all. Instead, it has powered through the turmoil of recent years: [Chart]

What’s the difference? The main answer, surely, is the euro: by adopting the euro Greece first brought on massive capital inflows, then found itself in a trap, unable to achieve the needed real devaluation without incredibly costly deflation.”